--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: History was a tangled thing, people were…" description: "\"“History was a tangled thing, people were resilient, and the one constant law of the world was that it would heal.”\" — Brenna Yovanoff" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77e/brenna-yovanoff-3157_history_history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were_797501.png" --- # History was a tangled thing, people were resilient, and… ![“History was a tangled thing, people were resilient, and the one constant law of the world was that it would heal.” quote by Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77e/brenna-yovanoff-3157_history_history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were_797501.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77e/brenna-yovanoff-3157_history_history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were_797501.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77e/brenna-yovanoff-3157_history_history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were_797501.png) > ““History was a tangled thing, people were resilient, and the one constant law of the world was that it would heal.”” [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human societies endure hardship and eventually recover, showing resilience and the healing power of time. **In simple terms:** People recover over time. Key Takeaway Trust in resilience and healing. Themes history resilience healing Mood reflective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - post‑war reconstruction - personal trauma - community rebuilding Key Concepts social cycles collective recovery Questions to Reflect On - How do you support healing in others? - What personal resilience have you witnessed? A Different Perspective Healing can be uneven and slow. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Resilient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resilient/) ## Related quotes > [I love when people are resilient and when they form ways of dealing with grief or dealing with some traumatic episode, and sometimes those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atom-egoyan/i-love-when-people-are-resilient-and-when-they-form-ways-of-dealing/) [Atom Egoyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atom-egoyan/) > [People are resilient. After all, every person born has recovered from nine months on life support.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/people-are-resilient-after-all-every-person-born-has-recovered-from/) [Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/) > [I feel the American people are resilient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacky-rosen/i-feel-the-american-people-are-resilient/) [Jacky Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacky-rosen/) > [ “There exists \[a\] word in German, Geschichte, which designates not accomplished history, but history in the present, doubtless determined in large part, yet only… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-althusser/there-exists-a-word-in-german-geschichte-which-designates-not/) [Louis Althusser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-althusser/) > [History is a tangled skein that one may take up at any point, and break when one has unravelled enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/history-is-a-tangled-skein-that-one-may-take-up-at-any-point-and/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [History is tangled, messy, contradictory. But is where we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eamon-duffy/history-is-tangled-messy-contradictory-but-is-where-we-are/) Eamon Duffy > [“There was so much about our past that I still didn't understand, and I wasn't one to tell the future. I could only tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yovanoff-brenna/there-was-so-much-about-our-past-that-i-still-didn-t-understand-and-i/) Yovanoff, Brenna > [In the Afghan people, I found the most resilient, welcoming people who, for the first time in my career, never judged me over my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietra-brettkelly/in-the-afghan-people-i-found-the-most-resilient-welcoming-people-who/) [Pietra Brettkelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietra-brettkelly/) > [Disabled people are often some of the most resilient, creative and determined people you will ever likely meet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-mccausland/disabled-people-are-often-some-of-the-most-resilient-creative-and/) [Chris McCausland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-mccausland/) > [“It’s funny. From up here, the destruction seems to fade. Almost as if like people, in time, even the world can heal itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eloise-dyson/it-s-funny-from-up-here-the-destruction-seems-to-fade-almost-as-if/) [Eloise Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eloise-dyson/) > [It all begins with forgiveness, because to heal the world, we first have to heal ourselves. And to heal the kids, we first have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jackson/it-all-begins-with-forgiveness-because-to-heal-the-world-we-first/) [Michael Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jackson/) > [He wanted to hit something or someone. He wanted to burn up the whole world, heal it, and burn it down again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/he-wanted-to-hit-something-or-someone-he-wanted-to-burn-up-the-whole/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [I think the antidote to any symptom borne of fear and scarcity is love. Compassion, understanding, respect, honor: all the things we need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-buffett/i-think-the-antidote-to-any-symptom-borne-of-fear-and-scarcity-is/) [Peter Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-buffett/) > [We cannot change the world alone. To heal ourselves, to restore the earth to life, to create the situations in which freedom can flourish,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/starhawk/we-cannot-change-the-world-alone-to-heal-ourselves-to-restore-the/) [Starhawk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/starhawk/) > [“No one sets out to be the bad guy, you set out to change the world and heal the wounds of society. Until the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-grace/no-one-sets-out-to-be-the-bad-guy-you-set-out-to-change-the-world-and/) Samuel Grace ## More by Brenna Yovanoff > [“Our lives were limitless and unknowable, not perfect, but ours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/our-lives-were-limitless-and-unknowable-not-perfect-but-ours/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“It’s not the wisest thing - love - but when it happens, there’s not a lot you can do to stop it. Sometimes you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/it-s-not-the-wisest-thing-love-but-when-it-happens-there-s-not-a-lot/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“Whatever they said, whatever they told you about yourself, it’s not true”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/whatever-they-said-whatever-they-told-you-about-yourself-it-s-not-true/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“We're literal people, you and me. Whatever the most obvious interpretation is, that's our truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/we-re-literal-people-you-and-me-whatever-the-most-obvious/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“The way Lillian says it is hungry, like she’s waiting for something to be revealed, and I wonder if maybe that’s the real difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/the-way-lillian-says-it-is-hungry-like-she-s-waiting-for-something-to/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“I still can't picture what he does in his every day life when he's not busy with school or misdemeanors or me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/i-still-can-t-picture-what-he-does-in-his-every-day-life-when-he-s/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [The treachery of demons is nothing compared to the betrayal of an angel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/the-treachery-of-demons-is-nothing-compared-to-the-betrayal-of-an/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“We sat on the picnic bench, not talking, not looking at each other, but being quiet and okay. The rain was almost gone, nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/we-sat-on-the-picnic-bench-not-talking-not-looking-at-each-other-but/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“I don’t remember any of the true, important parts, but there’s this dream I have.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/i-don-t-remember-any-of-the-true-important-parts-but-there-s-this/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [But what Davenport had been born into had taken so much from her, leaving her with just the wickedest and the worst. Her father…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/but-what-davenport-had-been-born-into-had-taken-so-much-from-her/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“Fisher twined his fingers with mine and when he did, the feeling was the best thing in the world, like it was always better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/fisher-twined-his-fingers-with-mine-and-when-he-did-the-feeling-was/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“What's up?' he said, like the church was always burning down and I always called him on a school night, telling him to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/what-s-up-he-said-like-the-church-was-always-burning-down-and-i/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“I looked at the ground and the dark, drizzling sky and pretty much anyplace that wasn't her. "I like you. A lot." When I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/i-looked-at-the-ground-and-the-dark-drizzling-sky-and-pretty-much/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“how awful to never be allowed to fail”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/how-awful-to-never-be-allowed-to-fail/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) > [“Don’t you ever just have those days where even if you don’t really like someone, you might as well hang out with them because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/don-t-you-ever-just-have-those-days-where-even-if-you-don-t-really/) [Brenna Yovanoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) [Explore all 135 Brenna Yovanoff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/) ## More History quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The NBA is my history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-hardaway/the-nba-is-my-history/) [Penny Hardaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-hardaway/) > [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/) [Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/) > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [Things live and die, and then someone processes them into edible portions. This is a complete telling of the story, 'Food.' The basic plot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fahrenthold/things-live-and-die-and-then-someone-processes-them-into-edible/) [David Fahrenthold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fahrenthold/) > [History is a certain way, but you just change the point of view a little bit, and you discover a whole new side of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-schroeder/history-is-a-certain-way-but-you-just-change-the-point-of-view-a/) [Allison Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-schroeder/) > [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [Today is a reality, tomorrow's a promise, and yesterday's history!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-blanks/today-is-a-reality-tomorrow-s-a-promise-and-yesterday-s-history/) [Billy Blanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-blanks/) > [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/) C-DASH > [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [“To those great geniuses now in petticoats, who shall write novels for the beloved reader's children, these men and things will be as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/to-those-great-geniuses-now-in-petticoats-who-shall-write-novels-for/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) [Browse all 27,263 History quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“History was a tangled thing, people were resilient, and the one constant law of the world was that it would heal.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Brenna Yovanoff" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were-resilient-and-the-one/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "History" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were-resilient-and-the-one/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77e/brenna-yovanoff-3157_history_history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were_797501.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77e/brenna-yovanoff-3157_history_history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were_797501.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/77e/brenna-yovanoff-3157_history_history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were_797501.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“History was a tangled thing, people were resilient, and the one constant law of the world was that it would…” — Brenna Yovanoff", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Brenna Yovanoff", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenna-yovanoff/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“History was a tangled thing, people...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were-resilient-and-the-one/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenna-yovanoff/history-was-a-tangled-thing-people-were-resilient-and-the-one/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```